 Retaining talents
Over the last few weeks, I have discussed the concept of commitment, the types of commitment and the possible ways we can enhance the different types of commitment as we seek to retain talents. This final post will look at organisational commitment in a hybrid world. I discussed how employers could enhance organisational commitment through recruitment, socialisation into the workforce, training, reward packages, etc. The prevalence of hybrid working has also influenced organisational commitment. The good news is that the same HR processes work for a hybrid work environment but with some minor additions to enhance to accommodate the dynamics in a hybrid work environment. I mentioned in the second post in this series that factors that affect affective commitment include organisational characteristics, the person's characteristics and work experience. Hybrid work has impacted organisational characteristics, particularly organisational communication. I have also observed that colleagues who joined the organisation before the pandemic had a higher level of organisational commitment. In contrast, those who joined during the pandemic have shown less commitment in terms of length of tenure to the organisation. My untested hypothesis suggests that these two groups of employees experienced different organisational socialisation processes. To address this, it is imperative to ensure that individual goals are aligned and socialised into organisational goals or values. And this should be in addition to the normal socialisation process arranged when a newly hired staff member joins. This alignment taps into their motivation and can link to other antecedents of commitment, such as work experience. Hybrid working has a significant impact on the employee's experience at work. Work experience includes job challenges, degree of autonomy, and the ability of the employee to use a variety of their skills. It also includes the scope of the employee's role and the relationship between the employee and their line manager. Hybrid working can enhance autonomy as managers have no choice but to focus on employee outcomes and outputs rather than behaviour/input control—for example, presenteeism, overtime, busyness etc. Research also suggests that commitment, created through perceptions and interpersonal contacts, is reduced through hybrid working as people have less time in the main office. Office time is primarily spent in meetings and other formal communication. The amount of informal communication has diminished substantially, and several organisations are actively trying to stimulate this form of communication by reducing this distance through ICT. In addition to virtual coffees and virtual watercooler channels, organisations should ensure that there are regular team-building activities, open virtual office hours for drop-ins, social events, problem-solving online discussion forums, peer recognition programs, virtual team projects, mentorship or buddy programmes for new starters, and cross-departmental collaboration. The relationship between line managers and their employees can have the most significant impact on organisational commitment. To enhance commitment, line managers are advised to manage for commitment. When managing for commitment, you should match a person's characteristics with the kind of commitment your organisation can provide. For some, it may be a belt and braces reward strategy or understanding how the candidate performs in a hybrid environment. Once onboard, ensure that the newly hired staff has a formal mentor or buddy that supports integration and socialisation for roughly six months. Organisations may also experiment with more office attendance in those first six months in order to increase socialisation support. Offering training and development opportunities in the early days of employment can enhance affective commitment but decrease continuance commitment. This is not bad news at all. The initial period can be training on internal ways of doing things to help the new starter settle in productively. This will improve affective commitment. Line managers can also enhance hybrid work autonomy by offering challenging jobs. Informal communication priorities should be taken seriously by the manager and happen regularly. I hope some of these tips can support the commitment levels in your organisation.
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 This week’s post was meant to complete the series on organisation commitment- keeping the hearts and minds of your employees; however, as I live in the United Kingdom and it is coronation weekend, I am reminded of the significance of rituals in a nation’s culture and its parallel significance in organisations. I discussed this briefly in my post of Creating a high-performance culture- The ultimate quest- creating a high-performance culture. Part 2 - HR Unplugged.
Watching the highlights of the ceremony made me reflect on rituals in organisations. The previous monarch’s coronation and the new monarch’s coronation are similar in style and format but with a modern twist, reflecting the current times we live in. Many of us were in awe of the pomp and pageantry. Organisations should keep hold of their rituals but regularly review them and ensure that it aligns with the outside pressures and opportunities within which it operates. Regardless of whether the ritual is supported or not, it reminds every one of the organisation’s past, present and future. The coronation also had a lot of symbolic meanings, some can be interpreted now, and some will unfold in the years to come. Other symbols include its value system, power, norms, meaning, heroes and heroines, and how it deals with crises. We know the monarch’s values as a Prince, but as a monarch, he swears to uphold law, justice, and mercy (and is a defender of faiths). How he lives up to these values is up to him, but we can see the last value at play during his coronation. This makes me reflect on the power of the public declaration of your values and living it out loud. Why is this important? Values define an organisation’s actions. It constrains how power is sought and exercised; what kind of emotions and interpersonal relationships it is appropriate to have and in what context; and what types of structure the organisation will have. During Queen Elizabeth’s reign, her understanding of what the crown represented was a life of stoicism and duty; this set the norm for her reign, we don’t know what our current monarch’s norm would be like, but leaders in organisations have an opportunity to learn from the previous monarch to have one message Audience of One - HR Unplugged to manage the different expectations placed on them. Speaking of symbols mediate meanings and actions, not rationality. And the meaning ascribed to symbols is essential. As the new reign begins, it is hoped that the meanings and actions of the monarch match that of his people, as a mismatch could backfire. At an organisational level, rational decisions, even with all their benefits, are not always the best as they sometimes take time to reach and err on the side of caution. Many companies have made it big when they took a gamble, and the story of Apple comes to mind. If we aspire to be innovative, the language, rituals and interactions should exemplify innovation. Meeting our aspiration will require everyday micro-actions which are beyond written strategy, mission, vision, and values. We should always remember the role of our heroes and heroines. Heroes and Heroines - HR Unplugged. I am sure there will be several heroes and heroines in this new reign as there were before. Long live the King and by extension may your organisation live well and prosper. |
AuthorJust me, 
a HR professional listening, learning and working towards an enhanced people experience at work
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